Rocker Has Terminal Brain Cancer

The lead singer and lyricist for a popular rock band has been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. The Tragically Hip announced the diagnosis for Gord Downie today on its Facebook page.

The band also announced that it will do a special tour this summer in honor of Downie.

Downie, 52, hails from Kingston, Ontario, Canada. In addition to his work with the band, he has released three solo albums, most recently “The Grand Bounce” in 2010.

The Tragically Hip has been together since 1984, taking its name from a skit in the Michael Nesmith movie “Elephant Parts.” The band has a string of No. 1 hits in its native Canada, and has established a following in the U.S. with live performances and songs including “New Orleans is Sinking,” “Courage” and “Poets.”

Here’s the post from the Tragically Hip’s Facebook page:

An Important Message From The Band:

Hello friends. We have some very tough news to share with you today, and we wish it wasn’t so.

A few months ago, in December, Gord Downie was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer.

Since then, obviously, he’s endured a lot of difficult times, and he has been fighting hard. In privacy along with his family, and through all of this, we’ve been standing by him.

So after 30-some years together as The Tragically Hip, thousands of shows, and hundreds of tours…

We’ve decided to do another one.

This feels like the right thing to do now, for Gord, and for all of us.

What we in The Hip receive, each time we play together, is a connection; with each other; with music and it’s magic; and during the shows, a special connection with all of you, our incredible fans.

So, we’re going to dig deep, and try to make this our best tour yet.

We hope you can come out and join us this summer – details and dates will be coming this week.

And we sincerely thank all of you, for your continued love and support,